Considering visiting Katikati to see the murals? Awesome, this post is for you.
I’m glad I saw the sign mentioning that Katikati was a mural town while heading north from Tauranga otherwise I never would have stopped here for a couple of hours.
This post will:
- tell you about the history of the Katikati murals
- have a map of the murals
- includes photos of the murals (that I found)
- The plans for a bypass road to be built which would have meant no through traffic passing through the town. This bypass has yet to be built!
- The kiwifruit industry was battling at the time, along with the stock market crash.
- 230+ Things to do in New Zealand
- The climb to the North Islands highest waterfall
- Mount Maunganui: The best walking route
KATIKATI MURAL TOWN’S HISTORY (SHORT VERSION)
Cheeky mural selfie to prove I visited the town
The Katikati Murals began appearing around the town way back in 1990 when the town was going through a tricky period and the future of the town was uncertain. The two biggest causes of concern were:
With the uncertainty clear, a few locals drew inspiration from a town, Chemainus in Canada who had been in a similar situation and used murals to draw tourists to the town. And so, Katikati (other towns that have since done the same thing) made it their mission to do something similar with all the murals to represent Katikati in some way, shape or form.
By 1996 there were 24 murals scattered throughout the town, and that has steadily increased with the latest tally at ~70 as of my visit. This total includes a few sculptures too.
KATIKATI MURAL MAP
THE KATIKATI MURALS
I didn’t have enough time to find all the murals in Katikati but did find plenty after picking up this map from the info center. I wasn’t sure if I should post photos of the murals here or not, as I don’t want to ruin it for you. But I guess people (and me), travel to destinations after seeing photos on Instagram, so I have.
Not all of the murals are remaining for one reason or another. Those that aren’t I have marked as N/A, but you can find mini replicas of many of these inside the info center. If you’d like to read more specific information on each mural, check out this site.
p.s. don’t feel like you need to grab a map, you’ll find most of them if you just walk along the main street through town.
KATIKATI MURAL TOWN IN PHOTOS
1. WAITEKOHE SCHOOL
2. URETARA LANDING
3. DR.JOE
4. TE AWANUI
N/A.
5. MAIN STREET
6. EARLY VENTURES
7. ATHENREE HOMESTEAD
8. REV. KATTERN’S OSTRICHES
9. NGA-KURI A WHAREI-KI TIKIRAU
10. HAYMAKING
11. CENTRAL MOTORS
12/13. SUNDAY IN A BUSH CAMP 1 & 2
14. A PIONEER KITCHEN
15. THE BULLOCK TEAM
N/A.
16. FIRST POST AND TELEGRAPH OFFICE
N/A.
17. JIMMY CUPLAN
18. THE MACMILLAN STORY 1
19. THE MACMILLAN STORY 2
20. GEORGE VESEY STEWART
N/A.
21. THOSE WHO SERVED
22. PRIMAL AOTEROA
N/A.
23. THE RIVER WAS THE ROAD
24. HUMPHREY
25. THE WIND VANES
26. THE SECOND PIONEER STORE 1
27. THE SECOND PIONEER STORE 2
28. WE LIVE HERE TOO
29. BARRY
30. POHUTUKAWA SENTINAL
31. HAIKU PATHWAY
32. TE WHANAU A TAUWHAO
33. TE WHAKAPAPA
34. NGA KATIKATI – THE GUARDIANS
N/A.
35. OUR PEOPLE – OUR STORY
36. AT THE DAWN OF TIME
37. TOY PARADE
38. PUKEKO KID AND FRIENDS
39. MUD IN YOUR EYE
40. GOING NOWHERE
41. OVERLOAD
42. THE PIONEERS
43. BIRDWALK
44. TILE WALL
45. JOURNEYS
46. THE RIVER WAS THE ROAD MURAL
47. GALLAHER FAMILY
48. KINDERGARTEN MURAL
49. THE HISTORY OF KIWIFRUIT
50. ANGLICAN CHURCH MURAL
51. IN A LAND OF PLENTY
52. IT’S HARVEST TIME
53. RIVER TO SEA
54. WAIRAKAU
55. CULTURAL ENCOUNTERS
56. LADY JOCELYN
57. TIMO’S KATIKATI
58. THE FACE OF CULTURE
59. DAVE HUME POOL MURAL
60. CHERRY COURT
61. HELPING GROW THE COUNTRY
62. GRASS ROOTS
63. TAMAWHARIUA
64. GEORGE VESEY STEWART
65. GONE POTTY
66. SPIRIT OF ANZAC
67. KANOHI KITEA-THE FACE OF MANY
68. JURASSIC PARADISE
69. WINDOWS OF OPPORTUNITY
70. THE FUTURE LAID IN THE PAST
71. THE FUTURE IS OUR CHILDREN
72. MAYBE IF WE CLOSE OUR EYES
73. HOLD ON TIGHT
74. BULLOCK TEAM
And there you go, I hope that convinces you to visit Katikati for at least a few hours, if not a few days. It’s not only the Mural Town of New Zealand, but it’s also known as the Avocado capital of NZ!
What to read next:
Hey, it’s Jub here. I’m the guy behind Chur New Zealand, helping you have the best time hiking, trekking, walking…whatever you want to call it…in NZ. I’m based in Queenstown and am always out and about exploring trails, old & new. If you have any questions, reach out.